Discrimination impacts most youth at some point. Almost all children and adolescents belong to at least one stigmatized group, whether they are a Black or Latino boy in school; an immigrant or refugee; a gay, lesbian, or bisexual teen; or a girl in physics class. Discrimination on the basis of race/ethnicity, immigration status, gender, sexual orientation, and gender identity can have long-term academic, psychological, and social repercussions, especially when it is directed at a cognitively developing child or an emotionally vulnerable adolescent. How children and adolescents are impacted by this discrimination depends on their cognitive ability to perceive the bias, the context in which the bias occurs, and resources they have to help cope with the bias.

This book details, synthesizes, and analyzes the perception and impact of discrimination in childhood and adolescence across multiple stigmatized social groups to help us better understand the complex phenomenon of discrimination and its long-term consequences. By looking at the similarities and differences in discrimination across all social groups, we can more fully understand its mechanisms of influence. Before we can fully address the persistent achievement gap between White and ethnic minority children, the high rates of suicidal thoughts among LGBT youth, and the underrepresentation of girls in STEM careers, we must first examine the ways in which discrimination influences and is understood by children, with their unique cognitive constraints and within the specific contexts in which they live.

Christia Spears Brown is a Professor of Developmental and Social Psychology at the University of Kentucky. Her research focuses on children's and adolescents' understanding of social inequalities and the ways those inequalities shape development.

Introduction: How Children and Adolescents Experience Discrimination Because of Ethnicity, Immigration, Gender, and Sexual Orientation

Part 1: Overview and Background on Discrimination in Childhood and Adolescence

1. Defining a Complex Phenomenon

2. Theoretical Framework for Understanding the Importance of Discrimination

3. An (Abridged) Historical Look at Research on Childhood Discrimination

Part 2: The Perception of Discrimination in Childhood and Adolescence

4. Perceptions of Discrimination Across Social Groups: Trends, Similarities, and Differences

5. How Children Develop an Understanding of Discrimination: The Social Cognitive Precursors

6. A Developmental Intergroup Analysis of Children and Adolescents' Perceptions of Discrimination: Who, What, and When

Part 3: The Impact of Discrimination on Children and Adolescents

7. The Physical and Psychological Impact of Perceiving Discrimination

8. Social and Behavioral Consequences of Perceiving Discrimination

9. The Academic Consequences of Perceiving Discrimination

Part 4: The Context of Discrimination in Childhood and Adolescence

10. The Role of the Family

11. The Peer Context

12. The Importance of Schools and Neighborhoods

Conclusion: Where to Go From Here